Welcome to the blog of Dr. Lisa Burns' Media Studies senior capstone class (3:30 pm section) at Quinnipiac University. If you're looking for the latest on media industry trends and insightful media analysis, you've come to the right place!
Saturday, February 19, 2022
Lifestyle & Niche Media Blog 4, Question 1 (March 1)
What is the appeal of lifestyle and niche cable
TV networks and/or programming? How are these networks/programs managing to remain
viable in the streaming era? Limit: 10
responses
Lifestyle brands have been around for ages. Whether they appeal to men, women, or families, lifestyle brands are something that regular people living ordinary lives can look to for aspiration, inspiration, or advice. With this comes a sense of community and kinship.
Chip and Joanna Gaines, owner of Magnolia Network, a DIY network affiliated with the Discovery Channel, describe lifestyle brands best. Their own lifestyle brand began in 2013 with their HGTV show Fixer Upper, in which they helped families in their rural community of Waco, Texas help transform their homes. These were ordinary people with normal sized houses that audiences could watch and enjoy. Loren Ruch, Group Senior Vice President of Development and Production for HGTV, says that HGTV is a place that is both “aspirational and attainable at the same time” (Parker). And the Gaines’ don’t like to call what they do “keeping up with the Joneses,” they much prefer to inspire, encourage, and be sincere (Littleton). This sincerity connects to the traditional family unit; the Gaines’ believing that linear television is not dead yet and there is importance in a family sitting around the TV together to watch something as a unit (Littleton). Additionally, Joanna notes that she receives fan mail stating how inspirational the Magnolia content has been on audiences in showing them how to succeed in what they want to do. As previously stated, they encourage and inspire. It makes lifestyle TV worth the watch.
For the Hallmark Channel, the new CEO, Wonya Lucas, aims to make Hallmark a more diverse space for viewers to further connect to stories and to build a more inclusive environment for audiences. Hallmark, too, is an uplifting, niche brand, that puts emphasis on smaller stories to give attention to smaller communities (Goldberg). Most often romantic comedies, the films shed positive lights on these stories, and thus give audiences a warm-hearted feeling of representation. As Joanna Gaines stated, it isn’t about stories that make audiences jealous, it’s about the attainable, so viewers can learn something to help themselves in the process of watching.
According to BusinessWire, a new study shows the deeper connection audiences have with lifestyle TV brands, such as the Magnolia and Hallmark networks. The Environment and Advertiser Impact Study found that “Strong creative grabs viewers’ attention, generates an emotional response and builds or reinforces long term memories” (Alm). The study found that commercials, because they are on linear TV, during lifestyle programming, are paid more attention to by 22%, compared to other networks. Further, emotional engagement is 94% higher for ads, as the advertising on these channels relate directly to the overall vibe of the lifestyle content viewers are already watching (Alm). The more emotionally attached the audience is to the brand and lifestyle content being watched, the more likely they’ll stick around for the commercials, reflecting similar themes.
Magnolia and Hallmark both have their own streaming services, but believe that the traditional, linear cable networks are what people are still drawn to when watching specific content. Being that they are based on traditionalism, community, and down-to-earth content, linear cable seems to be a great place to outsource such content. In the growing age of streaming, linear cable feels nostalgic, and that’s exactly the vibe these lifestyle channels go for.
Works Cited Alm, Kristin. “New Study Finds Lifestyle TV Programming Generates Higher Viewer Ad Engagement.” New Study Finds Lifestyle TV Programming Generates Higher Viewer Ad Engagement | Business Wire, 20 Mar. 2017, https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170320005667/en/New-Study-Finds-Lifestyle-TV-Programming-Generates-Higher-Viewer-Ad-Engagement. Goldberg, Lesley. “How Hallmark's New CEO Is Harnessing the Iconic Brand to Better Reflect Society.” The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2021, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/how-hallmarks-new-ceo-is-harnessing-the-iconic-brand-to-better-reflect-society-4133227/. Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/. Parker, Ian. “HGTV Is Getting a Renovation.” The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2021, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/29/hgtv-is-getting-a-renovation.
Part 2 Goldberg, Lesley. “How Hallmark's New CEO Is Harnessing the Iconic Brand to Better Reflect Society.” The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2021, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/how-hallmarks-new-ceo-is-harnessing-the-iconic-brand-to-better-reflect-society-4133227/. Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/.
Whyte, John, et al. “Hallmark Movies Are Raising Spirits during the Pandemic.” WebMD, WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/coronavirus-in-context/video/annie-howell-lisa-hamilton-daly.
The appeal of lifestyle and niche cable TV networks and programming go towards general audiences to meet a certain a demographic. Some niche TV networks are geared more towards a male audience meanwhile others are more geared towards a female audience.
The TV program I want to discuss is 2013's "Fixer Upper" from HGTV was a show about ordinary people who want to get their houses renovated for the better. Chip and Joanna Gaines' show lasted 4 seasons before they decided to stop producing the show on HGTV. The couple started off on television as personalities and now they run the Magnolia banner(Littleton). They were able to improve their name and recognition to the point where they were able to make the network an identity that is now owned by Discovery. When they were asked about the deal with Discovery, the Gaines stated, "He is given us the creative control, which is what made us get to this really great place"(Littleton). This was exactly what the Gaines wanted because they can control their own destinies with their network.
Discovery was not involved with streaming until the pandemic began when we were introduced to Discovery Plus. This was the perfect opportunity for them to enter the streaming world because linear television was dying at the beginning of the pandemic because of lack of content. But as stated in another Variety article I read, Discovery Plus has an advantage with the amount of previously made shows and content they created from their linear networks(Low). This is a big advantage that Discovery has compared to other streaming services because it can allow fans of old shows to be interested in watching some of their favorites.
The only difficulty that comes with this decision is the age of Discovery's viewers. The plurality of their viewers are the senior citizens, they are not fully capable of understanding how technology works so Discovery is probably not in the right mindset of allowing this to happen. This is the main setback for Discovery because if they wanted to embrace in the streaming world, they would like to see that most of their viewers will join them but if they don't fully understand how to stream, it could make that more difficult.
Overall, with the amount of research that has been conducted on Discovery and HGTV specifically, I can verify that Discovery's mindset is on the right track. They have a streaming service and are starting to slow down their linear television series and starting to produce originals.
Kunst, Alexander. “Discovery Channel Viewers in the U.S. by Age 2018.” Statista, 21 Jan. 2020, https://www.statista.com/statistics/228938/cable-tv-networks-discovery-channel-watched-in-the-last-7-days-usa/. Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/. Low, Elaine. “Discovery Plus to Debut to a World Still Stuck at Home, Yearning for Comfort TV.” Variety, Variety, 1 Jan. 2021, https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/discovery-plus-streaming-service-launch-preview-1234876935/. Parker, Ian. “HGTV Is Getting a Renovation.” The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2021, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/29/hgtv-is-getting-a-renovation.
Nicole Clemons Lifestyle brands provide a sense relatability to those who come across it. Lifestyle is a category that so many people can fit into and find nostalgia when watching. This brand is thriving on linear tv, and I believe it will for a long time despite streaming services. The appeal to lifestyle cable is that it brings things back to basics. With everything turning to digital media and streaming it is nice have a network that caters to both. While also catering to all of their viewers. Chip and Joanna Gaines the stars of the show ‘Fixer Upper’ have started their own network. Their network ‘Magnolia Network’ features Fixer Upper as well as other lifestyle content such as renovating, cooking, and much more. The show is streaming as well as being on linear tv, “the fact that we got the streaming platform up and running. But there’s still tens of millions of people still on the linear side. And we think a lot of our viewers are still there. So, we want to meet them there. We also just believe in the power of getting around the television as a family watching the same show together”(Littleton 2022). Chip and Joanna are able to remain viable in the streaming game due to starting on linear tv as television personalities. They were able to gain popularity with their show Fixer Upper which aired on HGTV. The network did very well, “In 2015, HGTV became a top-five cable network, measured by its average audience in the course of the day. That year, it reported an annual revenue of more than a billion dollars, from advertising and from licensing fees paid by companies carrying the channel. HGTV was bought by Discovery, Inc., in 2018, and since that time it has been ranked at No. 4. Last year, only Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN had larger average audiences, and HGTV outranked all its sibling Discovery channels, including TLC, the Food Network, and Animal Planet”(Parker 2021). This is showing that people are still watching linear tv, and that the home renovation content is still popular on linear tv. A reason many of these styles shows do so well is because they are so hard to turn off. With these shows you cannot just watch one episode “One reason for HGTV's success is that they're like the Lay's potato chips of television. You can't watch just one show. We've all been there: You turn on Property Brothers on Saturday morning while you're folding laundry and suddenly it's time to make dinner and you're knee-deep into a Beachfront Bargain Hunt marathon”(Country Living 2016). These shows inspire people to renovate their houses. They want you to feel refreshed when you finish watching. Although these types of shows are moving to streaming, I believe that linear tv will still have a hold on this audience. The traditional and feel-good moments are what keep people watching. With everything changing it is nice to have a sense of nostalgia which is what lifestyle content brings.
Work Cited Parker, Ian. “HGTV Is Getting a Renovation.” The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2021, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/29/hgtv-is-getting-a-renovation. Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/. “The Surprising Reason Everyone Is Suddenly So Obsessed with HGTV's 'Fixer Upper'.” Country Living, Country Living, 6 June 2018, https://www.countryliving.com/life/entertainment/news/a39131/why-you-are-obsessed-with-fixer-upper/.
Johnny Marquardt Part 1 Lifestyle television can be viewed in ore than one form. You have the shows from HGTV such as Fixer Upper and Love it or List it. You have The Pioneer Woman and Diners Dives and Drive-ins on the Cooking Channel. You even have Man vs. Food on Travel Channel. These are all mostly unscripted shows that help motivate viewers in the real world to follow dreams. Whether that dream is to fix a house, cook, or travel, there’s a lifestyle type show for you. These types of shows find a lot of success on cable, even in with streaming services on a huge rise and possible takeover. I think the reason of their success is that it’s all family-friendly, fun, and informational. Not to mention its inspirational for your own life to go out and do what you want to do. Will this success last forever in cable? I think it won’t last forever with streaming so it’s only a matter of time. Yet, there are some big changes to keep the cable wagon moving. HGTV is in the midst of an idea that is considered a little more mature than before. According to The New Yorker it states, “Ruttan-Daigle sketched out three possible approaches: a series that, each week, documented the experience of people who had unwittingly bought a former meth lab; a series about a cleaning company specializing in meth labs; a series about entrepreneurs who look for inexpensive former meth labs to buy and renovate: meth-house flippers” (Parker). This is a completely new territory for HGTV, most of their content is barely TV-PG, so this is something new that could bring in new viewers to the network.
Johnny Marquardt Part 2 HGTV isn’t the only network trying some new ideas though. The Discovery-owned network, DIY Network is going through a rebrand, with the Gaines family in the forefront of it all. Chip and Joanna Gaines are known for their show originally on HGTV, Fixer Upper, and now they are taking over their own network, called the Magnolia Network. According to Variety, “Magnolia arrives as a rebrand of Discovery’s existing DIY network. But even as a rebrand, a linear TV channel launch is a rare event in media these days. Magnolia Network programming first appeared last year as a brand imprint on the Discovery Plus streaming platform” (Littleton). So even though these networks are having success in the linear cable side, doesn’t mean they aren’t converting to streaming services. Discovery Plus has taken a completely different route and is taking over the lifestyle Tv scene. According to Variety, “Discovery Plus launched last January… Discovery, Inc. hit 22 million paid streaming subscribers worldwide by the end of 2021, with the vast majority being Discovery Plus customers” (Maas). So, with success of cable still showing growth I think it’s only a matter of time before streaming takes over like most networks.
Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/. Maas, Jennifer. “Discovery Ended 2021 with 22 Million Paid Streaming Subscribers.” Variety, Variety, 24 Feb. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/discovery-streaming-subscribers-22-million-discovery-plus-1235188590/. Parker, Ian. “HGTV Is Getting a Renovation.” The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2021, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/29/hgtv-is-getting-a-renovation.
Ben Labadia - Part 1
ReplyDeleteLifestyle brands have been around for ages. Whether they appeal to men, women, or families, lifestyle brands are something that regular people living ordinary lives can look to for aspiration, inspiration, or advice. With this comes a sense of community and kinship.
Chip and Joanna Gaines, owner of Magnolia Network, a DIY network affiliated with the Discovery Channel, describe lifestyle brands best. Their own lifestyle brand began in 2013 with their HGTV show Fixer Upper, in which they helped families in their rural community of Waco, Texas help transform their homes. These were ordinary people with normal sized houses that audiences could watch and enjoy. Loren Ruch, Group Senior Vice President of Development and Production for HGTV, says that HGTV is a place that is both “aspirational and attainable at the same time” (Parker). And the Gaines’ don’t like to call what they do “keeping up with the Joneses,” they much prefer to inspire, encourage, and be sincere (Littleton). This sincerity connects to the traditional family unit; the Gaines’ believing that linear television is not dead yet and there is importance in a family sitting around the TV together to watch something as a unit (Littleton). Additionally, Joanna notes that she receives fan mail stating how inspirational the Magnolia content has been on audiences in showing them how to succeed in what they want to do. As previously stated, they encourage and inspire. It makes lifestyle TV worth the watch.
For the Hallmark Channel, the new CEO, Wonya Lucas, aims to make Hallmark a more diverse space for viewers to further connect to stories and to build a more inclusive environment for audiences. Hallmark, too, is an uplifting, niche brand, that puts emphasis on smaller stories to give attention to smaller communities (Goldberg). Most often romantic comedies, the films shed positive lights on these stories, and thus give audiences a warm-hearted feeling of representation. As Joanna Gaines stated, it isn’t about stories that make audiences jealous, it’s about the attainable, so viewers can learn something to help themselves in the process of watching.
Part 2
DeleteAccording to BusinessWire, a new study shows the deeper connection audiences have with lifestyle TV brands, such as the Magnolia and Hallmark networks. The Environment and Advertiser Impact Study found that “Strong creative grabs viewers’ attention, generates an emotional response and builds or reinforces long term memories” (Alm). The study found that commercials, because they are on linear TV, during lifestyle programming, are paid more attention to by 22%, compared to other networks. Further, emotional engagement is 94% higher for ads, as the advertising on these channels relate directly to the overall vibe of the lifestyle content viewers are already watching (Alm). The more emotionally attached the audience is to the brand and lifestyle content being watched, the more likely they’ll stick around for the commercials, reflecting similar themes.
Magnolia and Hallmark both have their own streaming services, but believe that the traditional, linear cable networks are what people are still drawn to when watching specific content. Being that they are based on traditionalism, community, and down-to-earth content, linear cable seems to be a great place to outsource such content. In the growing age of streaming, linear cable feels nostalgic, and that’s exactly the vibe these lifestyle channels go for.
Works Cited
Alm, Kristin. “New Study Finds Lifestyle TV Programming Generates Higher Viewer Ad Engagement.” New Study Finds Lifestyle TV Programming Generates Higher Viewer Ad Engagement | Business Wire, 20 Mar. 2017, https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170320005667/en/New-Study-Finds-Lifestyle-TV-Programming-Generates-Higher-Viewer-Ad-Engagement.
Goldberg, Lesley. “How Hallmark's New CEO Is Harnessing the Iconic Brand to Better Reflect Society.” The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2021, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/how-hallmarks-new-ceo-is-harnessing-the-iconic-brand-to-better-reflect-society-4133227/.
Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/.
Parker, Ian. “HGTV Is Getting a Renovation.” The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2021, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/29/hgtv-is-getting-a-renovation.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletePart 2
DeleteGoldberg, Lesley. “How Hallmark's New CEO Is Harnessing the Iconic Brand to Better Reflect Society.” The Hollywood Reporter, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2021, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/how-hallmarks-new-ceo-is-harnessing-the-iconic-brand-to-better-reflect-society-4133227/.
Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/.
Whyte, John, et al. “Hallmark Movies Are Raising Spirits during the Pandemic.” WebMD, WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/coronavirus-in-context/video/annie-howell-lisa-hamilton-daly.
Gage Kilborne 1
ReplyDeleteThe appeal of lifestyle and niche cable TV networks and programming go towards general audiences to meet a certain a demographic. Some niche TV networks are geared more towards a male audience meanwhile others are more geared towards a female audience.
The TV program I want to discuss is 2013's "Fixer Upper" from HGTV was a show about ordinary people who want to get their houses renovated for the better. Chip and Joanna Gaines' show lasted 4 seasons before they decided to stop producing the show on HGTV. The couple started off on television as personalities and now they run the Magnolia banner(Littleton). They were able to improve their name and recognition to the point where they were able to make the network an identity that is now owned by Discovery. When they were asked about the deal with Discovery, the Gaines stated, "He is given us the creative control, which is what made us get to this really great place"(Littleton). This was exactly what the Gaines wanted because they can control their own destinies with their network.
Gage Kilborne 2
DeleteDiscovery was not involved with streaming until the pandemic began when we were introduced to Discovery Plus. This was the perfect opportunity for them to enter the streaming world because linear television was dying at the beginning of the pandemic because of lack of content. But as stated in another Variety article I read, Discovery Plus has an advantage with the amount of previously made shows and content they created from their linear networks(Low). This is a big advantage that Discovery has compared to other streaming services because it can allow fans of old shows to be interested in watching some of their favorites.
The only difficulty that comes with this decision is the age of Discovery's viewers. The plurality of their viewers are the senior citizens, they are not fully capable of understanding how technology works so Discovery is probably not in the right mindset of allowing this to happen. This is the main setback for Discovery because if they wanted to embrace in the streaming world, they would like to see that most of their viewers will join them but if they don't fully understand how to stream, it could make that more difficult.
Overall, with the amount of research that has been conducted on Discovery and HGTV specifically, I can verify that Discovery's mindset is on the right track. They have a streaming service and are starting to slow down their linear television series and starting to produce originals.
Gage Kilborne 3
DeleteKunst, Alexander. “Discovery Channel Viewers in the U.S. by Age 2018.” Statista, 21 Jan. 2020, https://www.statista.com/statistics/228938/cable-tv-networks-discovery-channel-watched-in-the-last-7-days-usa/.
Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/.
Low, Elaine. “Discovery Plus to Debut to a World Still Stuck at Home, Yearning for Comfort TV.” Variety, Variety, 1 Jan. 2021, https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/discovery-plus-streaming-service-launch-preview-1234876935/.
Parker, Ian. “HGTV Is Getting a Renovation.” The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2021, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/29/hgtv-is-getting-a-renovation.
Nicole Clemons
ReplyDeleteLifestyle brands provide a sense relatability to those who come across it. Lifestyle is a category that so many people can fit into and find nostalgia when watching. This brand is thriving on linear tv, and I believe it will for a long time despite streaming services.
The appeal to lifestyle cable is that it brings things back to basics. With everything turning to digital media and streaming it is nice have a network that caters to both. While also catering to all of their viewers. Chip and Joanna Gaines the stars of the show ‘Fixer Upper’ have started their own network. Their network ‘Magnolia Network’ features Fixer Upper as well as other lifestyle content such as renovating, cooking, and much more. The show is streaming as well as being on linear tv, “the fact that we got the streaming platform up and running. But there’s still tens of millions of people still on the linear side. And we think a lot of our viewers are still there. So, we want to meet them there. We also just believe in the power of getting around the television as a family watching the same show together”(Littleton 2022).
Chip and Joanna are able to remain viable in the streaming game due to starting on linear tv as television personalities. They were able to gain popularity with their show Fixer Upper which aired on HGTV. The network did very well, “In 2015, HGTV became a top-five cable network, measured by its average audience in the course of the day. That year, it reported an annual revenue of more than a billion dollars, from advertising and from licensing fees paid by companies carrying the channel. HGTV was bought by Discovery, Inc., in 2018, and since that time it has been ranked at No. 4. Last year, only Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN had larger average audiences, and HGTV outranked all its sibling Discovery channels, including TLC, the Food Network, and Animal Planet”(Parker 2021). This is showing that people are still watching linear tv, and that the home renovation content is still popular on linear tv.
A reason many of these styles shows do so well is because they are so hard to turn off. With these shows you cannot just watch one episode “One reason for HGTV's success is that they're like the Lay's potato chips of television. You can't watch just one show. We've all been there: You turn on Property Brothers on Saturday morning while you're folding laundry and suddenly it's time to make dinner and you're knee-deep into a Beachfront Bargain Hunt marathon”(Country Living 2016). These shows inspire people to renovate their houses. They want you to feel refreshed when you finish watching.
Although these types of shows are moving to streaming, I believe that linear tv will still have a hold on this audience. The traditional and feel-good moments are what keep people watching. With everything changing it is nice to have a sense of nostalgia which is what lifestyle content brings.
Nicole Clemons cont
DeleteWork Cited
Parker, Ian. “HGTV Is Getting a Renovation.” The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2021, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/29/hgtv-is-getting-a-renovation.
Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/.
“The Surprising Reason Everyone Is Suddenly So Obsessed with HGTV's 'Fixer Upper'.” Country Living, Country Living, 6 June 2018, https://www.countryliving.com/life/entertainment/news/a39131/why-you-are-obsessed-with-fixer-upper/.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteJohnny Marquardt Part 1
ReplyDeleteLifestyle television can be viewed in ore than one form. You have the shows from HGTV such as Fixer Upper and Love it or List it. You have The Pioneer Woman and Diners Dives and Drive-ins on the Cooking Channel. You even have Man vs. Food on Travel Channel. These are all mostly unscripted shows that help motivate viewers in the real world to follow dreams. Whether that dream is to fix a house, cook, or travel, there’s a lifestyle type show for you. These types of shows find a lot of success on cable, even in with streaming services on a huge rise and possible takeover. I think the reason of their success is that it’s all family-friendly, fun, and informational. Not to mention its inspirational for your own life to go out and do what you want to do. Will this success last forever in cable? I think it won’t last forever with streaming so it’s only a matter of time. Yet, there are some big changes to keep the cable wagon moving. HGTV is in the midst of an idea that is considered a little more mature than before. According to The New Yorker it states, “Ruttan-Daigle sketched out three possible approaches: a series that, each week, documented the experience of people who had unwittingly bought a former meth lab; a series about a cleaning company specializing in meth labs; a series about entrepreneurs who look for inexpensive former meth labs to buy and renovate: meth-house flippers” (Parker). This is a completely new territory for HGTV, most of their content is barely TV-PG, so this is something new that could bring in new viewers to the network.
Johnny Marquardt Part 2
ReplyDeleteHGTV isn’t the only network trying some new ideas though. The Discovery-owned network, DIY Network is going through a rebrand, with the Gaines family in the forefront of it all. Chip and Joanna Gaines are known for their show originally on HGTV, Fixer Upper, and now they are taking over their own network, called the Magnolia Network. According to Variety, “Magnolia arrives as a rebrand of Discovery’s existing DIY network. But even as a rebrand, a linear TV channel launch is a rare event in media these days. Magnolia Network programming first appeared last year as a brand imprint on the Discovery Plus streaming platform” (Littleton). So even though these networks are having success in the linear cable side, doesn’t mean they aren’t converting to streaming services. Discovery Plus has taken a completely different route and is taking over the lifestyle Tv scene. According to Variety, “Discovery Plus launched last January… Discovery, Inc. hit 22 million paid streaming subscribers worldwide by the end of 2021, with the vast majority being Discovery Plus customers” (Maas). So, with success of cable still showing growth I think it’s only a matter of time before streaming takes over like most networks.
Littleton, Cynthia. “Chip and Joanna Gaines Return to TV with Magnolia Network: 'This Is Sincerely What We Are'.” Variety, Variety, 5 Jan. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/chip-jo-gaines-fixer-upper-magnolia-discovery-1235146932/.
Maas, Jennifer. “Discovery Ended 2021 with 22 Million Paid Streaming Subscribers.” Variety, Variety, 24 Feb. 2022, https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/discovery-streaming-subscribers-22-million-discovery-plus-1235188590/.
Parker, Ian. “HGTV Is Getting a Renovation.” The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2021, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/29/hgtv-is-getting-a-renovation.